This short, news-based assembly is designed to help focus students' minds on the cyclone that struck Myanmar in early May 2008 and the devastation the high winds, heavy rain and tidal surges caused. There are important lessons about preparedness, and about interpreting media coverage.

It can be used in any educational setting with young people – informally or as part of citizenship education. It is one of a series of British Red Cross humanitarian education resources. 

Teachers may like to read the Disasters Emergency Committee briefing which explains how a DEC appeal comes about.

Download this assembly as a PDF or Word document.

• To help students appreciate the need for swift and effective action in response to a disaster
• To increase students' understanding of how detailed and accurate knowledge is vital to disaster relief
• To help students think about media coverage of major disasters and to encourage them to look critically at the news agenda.

This early-response assembly kit does not require much advance preparation. Voice one is the main narrator. Two other voices in the performance can be read by teachers, or by students who are confident enough not to require much rehearsal.

Voice 1
On Sunday the number of deaths was estimated at 350.

Voice 2
On Monday television reports suggested that the death toll could be as high as 4,000.

Voice 3
By Tuesday there were fears that 15,000 had died.

Voice 1
We are talking about the Southeast Asian country of Myanmar, also known as Burma. Last weekend a very powerful weather system with winds up to 120 miles per hour hit the southern coastal area.

The cyclone, as it is known, brought very high winds, heavy rain and flood water. They claimed many lives and destroyed thousands of homes. Many people went missing.

Voice 2
The people of Myanmar need help. Some countries have well-established relations with international aid agencies. They discuss in advance what their needs might be. When a disaster does strike, an agreed relief plan can be put into action.

Voice 3
Myanmar is not a country like that. It does not have close ties with outside agencies. Providing help, when you are not sure what help is needed, is a very big problem

Voice 1
Imagine for a moment that your friends were in difficulties. They sent you a text saying – "We're in trouble. We need help. Get help quickly."

Voice 2
You would be very willing to do what you could. But what? What would you do if you got a request for help like that?

Voice 3
Think of the questions you would need to know the answers to.

[Option: invite contributions from the assembly or group. What would you need to know before you knew how to help?]

Voice 1
Anyone providing help would urgently need to ask:
> Where are you?
> What has happened?
> Is anyone injured or in serious danger?
> What is most urgent?
> What do you think you need?
> Is anyone else helping? What are they bringing?

Voice 2
Without answers to questions like these, the help you provide is not likely to be very effective or efficient.

Voice 3
If people are asked for help and don't know what is needed, what do they do? The chances are they guess, or bring what help they can. Some people's guesses will be better than others. Some people might guess wrongly and arrange for help that is useless in those circumstances. It may even be a hindrance.

Voice 1
We do know something about what the people affected by the Myanmar cyclone need. The Myanmar Red Cross has been distributing drinking water, clothing, cooking utensils, plastic tarpaulins and hygiene kits. Insecticide-treated bed nets will help prevent the spread of malaria. Purification tablets can provide clean drinking water.

Voice 2
We can tell from this that the emphasis is on the very basics for survival. People whose homes are damaged or destroyed need shelter and food. It is also clear that that the water supply to many people has been cut off or contaminated.

Voice 3
We can also tell that there is a risk to health from the tropical infection malaria. Malaria is very much linked to poverty. Millions worldwide die of it each year, many of them children.

Voice 1
In coming days, much more news will come from Myanmar. Some of it will report the personal stories of enormous suffering of very many people. We will probably learn more about the initial impact of the cyclone. We may discover that the tidal wave that followed the winds caused many of the deaths.

Voice 2
We will hear about the ways that local people helped each in whatever ways they could in the hours and days immediately afterwards.

Voice 3
Western television, radio and newspapers will also probably try to find someone to blame. They will question whether warnings were given early enough. They will report criticisms of authorities and individuals who did not respond quickly enough or in the best possible way.

Voice 1
Meanwhile, what lessons can we learn today from what we now know of the awful devastation that has affected so many people? We know that we cannot prevent extreme weather events such as cyclones from happening. But, as with any such disaster, we can reduce their impact by planning for them in advance.

Voice 2
It helps... if we have early warning systems, so there is time to move to a safer place or make other preparations.

Voice 3
It helps... if we recognise quickly that there is a real emergency – and that we need to call on more than our own resources to help.

Voice 2
It helps... if those we call on for emergency assistance know what we need, and that we have all thought about, even practised for, such an emergency.

Voice 1
All this is true of the disaster brought by the Myanmar cyclone. It is also something for us to think about in our own lives here.

Remember: If the first time we ever think about coping with an emergency is when it is happening – that could well be too late.

End of performance

There are various ways to follow up and extend the work begun by this short assembly. Here are some options:

• There is much useful information on preparing for disasters in an education resource developed following the Bangladesh cyclone. It provides many relevant points of comparison and learning.
• Explore with students the last time Myanmar was in the news. Last October many people were arrested following demonstrations and worried families were asking for help in locating relatives who were detained or missing. See the relevant news think! bulletin. What do students know or remember from that period?
• Monitor how the media cover such events. Students may be able to predict a pattern of media coverage. Ask how long they think it will last. Knowledge of recent disasters such as the Bangladesh cyclone or Asian earthquake can be used to find common themes. A fascinating and illuminating World Press Tracker is provided by the news agency Reuters.  
• News organisations provide video clips which can help make remote events more vivid.